Creating Solutions of California's Affordable Housing Crisis with Orbit Homes
With California voters concerned about affordable housing, Lauren Tucker, an entrepreneur and co-founder of Orbit Homes, sees her company’s contemporary manufactured homes as a potential solution.
“California has an affordability crisis with no easy ‘silver bullet solution’,” acknowledged Tucker. “So we decided to start Orbit as an alternative housing option for families who want to live in this state without paying millions of dollars.”
Tucker believes the American dream “stick built” home is unattainable for many U.S. housing markets. “We knew consumers, facing high rents and home values, would consider alternatives like manufactured homes with our radically redesigned floor plans and contemporary aesthetic.”
She continued: “California’s extremely high cost of living is great for homeowners but offers little opportunity for non-owners who want to enter the market. We’d like to expand our partnerships throughout the state, especially in San Diego which recently ranked as the least affordable city in the U.S.”
Founded in 2018, Tucker knew the manufactured home market was ripe for change.
“The manufactured homes of the past carry a significant stigma with buyers today, but we’ve completely changed the look, feel and comfort of them,” she said. “Our residences are built with the same materials of traditional real estate at a lower price. While we designed these lodgings perfect for park communities and primary residences, there is a very real market need for our homes.”
Orbit offers eight contemporary residential and luxury park modules servicing the California and Hawaii markets. Starting at $265K, each have open-kitchen layouts, pre-installed appliances, large windows in each room and outdoor decks.
Tucker has been thrilled by the company’s many success stories.
“We have many customers who are lifelong park community residents who believe our homes are changing the general public’s perception of living there. For example, Travis Collings, a 37-year old owner in the Seminole Springs Park of Agoura Hills, credits Orbit for providing him an opportunity to live near the California coast. Surrounded by single family homes costing an average of $12M – completely out of reach for nearly everyone - he has been able to live in the lodging, which offers the same proximity to the beach”
Tucker is also seeing a few of their owners use their homes as accessory dwelling units to house adult children or parents close but not in the primary residence.
“ADUs are a major development in California’s housing industry, because they were only legalized a few years ago. Now, ADUs are seen as a tool to increase housing density in single-family zoning areas, like Los Angeles. Additionally, a few of our homes are now serving as short-term rentals, generating significant cash income for owners.
Tucker said that one happy customer, in Joshua Tree, takes advantage of Coachella attendees and outdoor enthusiasts who want to stay in a short-term rental with modern efficiencies.
People interested in Orbit can go to their website, customize their finishes, and purchase their home online. “We believe these homes are beautiful, alternative housing solutions for many families currently priced out of California’s expensive housing and rental markets,” noted Tucker. “The affordability crisis is changing buyer behavior. With contemporary designs and open floor layouts, our homes are charting a new path for the manufactured housing industry to provide real alternatives to traditional single-family homes.”
There are many personalization options, including adding a pool, an extended deck, exterior and interior color schemes, and cabinet colors.
Tucker is focused on moving their entire order process online. “The goal is to host the entire home build process online with estimated finishes, templates, and upgrades with estimated prices, factory build, and final installation dates. Additionally, we have a major announcement in the works to add an even wider variety of products to our company’s offerings.”
*All photos are courtesy of Autonomous Living.
